The Tales of Paladins of Valhalla
by RanLei
Summary: Atem Freyr knew that it was a sin to gaze upon the Holy Priest of Atala, Yuugi Mutou. But it was nothing until he was made a guard for the Holy Priest. The Paladins of Valhalla never know what they're up against: there's an adorable holy priest, a blond hot-tempered bishop, a cheeky white-haired bishop, and a fiery mage. And what would they do if Atlantis lay a claim to the Priest?


_This is our tale. Our tale as we meet our significant others and conquer the forces that tries to separate us. It may bore you or interest you. But I do think that you will find it... interesting._

_-Atem Freyr, leader of the Four Paladins of Valhalla._

* * *

_**Atem.**_

Gazing upon them is a sin.

I, for a fact, know that. But I could never tear my eyes away from the lithe beauty that is the Holy Priest. He possesses pale, ivory skin that are unblemished by dirt and a face so beautiful that the angels stop and stare from the heaven. Amethyst eyes reflecting beauty and innocence, knowing nothing about blood and evil…

I was enthralled.

Even as the highest knight of Valhalla, I have no rights whatsoever to gaze upon the beauty that is the Holy Priest. Even as the knight who stood right in front of his parade, I have no right to be in his holy presence… until his melodious voice calls to me during the deadliest time of the night of the journey.

"Hi…" I turn to see him, laying my eyes upon the sole man, merely a boy, who uphold the glory of the Holy City. I cannot speak, I cannot breathe. I simply gape upon his beauty. "Oh no… not again… I'm not even that special…" To hear his voice saying about how he was not special was a blasphemy. I only frown as the Holy Priest of Atala returned to the sanctuary that is his caravan.

"I wish Yami was here… _he _won't be all ballistic just from hearing me talk like a normal person…"

I then do the unthinkable. I barge inside his caravan, not wanting to think that I have upset him. I take a calming breath and offer my hand to him. "I am Atem Freyr, Paladin of the Valhalla Knights." I smile to the boy, making him gape at me even though I was nothing compared to his beauty.

"I-I'm Yuugi Mutou… Holy Priest of Atala. Nice to meet you?" He puzzles me. Here he is, the highest ranked person in the entire Aschel continent, and yet he is trying to be polite to me. I won't be as surprised as I am now if he is a normal person trying to kiss up to the Paladin of Valhalla Knights, but he is not. He is the Holy Priest, the very entity the whole Aschel continent revere to.

"Nice to meet you too." When I move my hand a bit closer, he shies away from my hand. I retract it immediately, fearing that I might have done something that makes him uncomfortable. "I-I'm sorry…" He says as his amethyst eyes meet with my crimson very shyly. "But… I am not supposed to touch other people when I have been purified. Please come and visit me while I'm in the Celtic Meadow, I will be very happy if someone other than my friends, I-I mean bishops and Yami visits me!"

I know for a fact that the Holy Priest is not allowed out of the Celtic Meadow other than the times like now, where he has to go to the Silent Shores to purify himself for ceremonies. But Celtic Meadow itself is only restricted to bishops and highest-ranking people of Aschel continent. But I have no difficulties with that.

"Very well, your eminence. Is there anything else you require in our journey?" I ask as I bow to him. He only smiles. "Call me Yuugi. And do you want to accompany me for the night? I am very bored and I can't seem to get in touch with my friends…" I must steel myself as he says those words that sound very inviting. He is the Holy Priest of Atala, dammit! He couldn't mean those words in _that _way.

"Very well, your eminence. I shall accompany you for the night."

* * *

_**Seto.**_

I watch as the blond bishop kicks the water to himself angrily and it puzzles me how a very indignant person could be a bishop to the most revered priest. "I don't get why I'm not done with purifyin' yet! I wanna go back to the Celtic Meadow with Yuugi!"

"So I suggest you hurry up with the purification by doing it properly instead of delaying by doing it clumsily." The blond bishop shoots me an angry look and hisses. "You think it's easy to be purified, huh? Try soaking yourself with only a cloth thinner than towel and pray for two hours straight before doing it again until seven times."

I scoff. "Try standing guard to a bishop who's supposed to be purified by now if he isn't whining so much." The blond bishop growls. "What was that you jerk?" I never expect that I would meet with such a short-tempered bishop. According to all the books I have read pertaining the Holy Priest and his bishops, I was sure that all of them would be a fragile holy creature with wings and stuff. But they aren't.

I have meet with the Holy Priest, and I must admit that he looks fragile and wise, even when he doesn't have wings. But this bishop that I'm assigned to guard is such a hot-tempered one and he seems to have zero grace. I sigh as I stand by the shores, only a few centimeters from the water. I use my esoteric stone and make the water soak the whiny bishop from head to toe.

"What was that for? You jerk!" He shivers as the cold wind blows. "Just hurry up and pray already. You're just like a puppy that couldn't even soak itself properly. Just pray and be done with it." I sigh. The blond bishop throws me a hateful glare. "I'm not a puppy, I'm Katsuya Jounouchi!" He says begrudgingly. "But okay then, asshole, I wanna be done with this too anyways." He clasps his hand together and starts to pray. And it seems to be a singing prayer because he began to sing beautifully.

I never expect that such a crude and hot-tempered bishop to sing like an angel would.

* * *

_**Bakura.**_

"Ah, Jou is singing. Finally." I watch as the white-haired bishop smile to the direction of the shores. "Oh, don't mind me, my good sir. We can go ahead if you like." I could tell that he wants to stay and hear this singing voice. So I only throw my head away.

"Thank you." He says calmly and closes his eyes, indulging himself in the melodious prayer. I roll my eyes. It's not like that I don't appreciate good singing and all, I just don't like the fact that I'm stuck in a guarding mission and not something thrilling. Like a war, perhaps?

Sure, guarding a holy bishop is one of the few missions with high prestige. After all, guarding the holy members of the Aschel continent is a very important job that I, Bakura Cleithfiger, deserve to take. But the prestige really isn't worth it. Especially when you're guarding a very cheeky bishop by the name Ryou Aschelicht.

When the entire parade first arrived, it was a complete parade. There is Atem and the Holy Priest, Seto and his bishop, Marik and his esoteric mage, and then Ryou Aschelicht and I. But the cheeky brat just went ahead and prayed without me, finishing it in the first fourteen hours, and then went back to his caravan to read some books.

And so I said to him to just go home and be done with it. But he says that he won't go home until the others have. And he was the first to ask the Holy Priest's parade to leave without the rest because the Holy Priest needs to return to the Celtic Meadow immediately.

And so, I am stuck here with the stuck-up Seto, his hotheaded bishop, Marik and his esoteric mage, and then with the white-haired bishop himself.

"Why didn't you return with his eminence first and be done with it?" I ask. The cheeky bishop only looks to me with an unreadable expression. "Because I want to." He says as he flips another page of his book. "Jou singing is a very rare occasion. He usually sings when Yuugi's sick or during purification. And he usually starts purifying after Yuugi left. So that's it." He put down his book and took a green esoteric stone from his pocket.

"Hmph, I thought you bishops don't use those." I say as I watch him make the stone levitate. "Yuugi's the only one with a very powerful holy magic. The rest of us actually need to rely on the esoteric stones." He says with a sly smile. By instinct, I grab my sword and point it at him. "You seem bored, aren't you, good sir?" He asks as he stands up from the ground he had been sitting on. "Would you like to practice with me? It should be fine as long as you don't touch me."

I activate the esoteric stone I embedded on my sword and made it glow an ominous silver. His green esoteric stone glows faintly and his smile grows even wider. "Sometimes I wonder why I become a holy bishop and not an esoteric mage…"

As thorny vines appear from his esoteric stone, I am already dodging from its attacks. And then I begin to think that it's not such a bad idea to guard Ryou Aschelicht.

* * *

_**Marik.**_

"Can we leave now?"

"Not now, pretty light. Jounouchi just finished singing and I think Ryou is dueling with Bakura. So I think we'll go tomorrow morning at the fastest." I close the shades and leave our room dark. I smile a wicked smile to Malik, who lies tiredly on top of the bed. "Oh god we should return to the capital immediately. I'm so tired."

I snicker as I slip to the bed with him, snaking my arm around his bottom. "Marik, I'm not in the mood so stop it." I lie beside him and bit his earlobe, making him go red. "I know you're tired, pretty light. I'll just be a good boy and sleep like a normal man instead of a gallant man I usually am."

Malik's face turns into a very interesting shade of red. "So, how about it, pretty light? A quick round before you actually fall asleep?" One thing I learn when I was courting one Malik Ishtar is to be sly and use my silver tongue to the best of my capabilities. Hot and fiery types like my lover need to have a very ferocious coaxing, which I'm very capable of giving.

I love Malik so much. And I also love the fact that my name is forever carved on the history as someone who made a respectable bishop drop his position and pursue a different career just to be with me. I smirk as I remember one of the lines I read on the book Bakura lent me. 'Marik Samael is the one who made one of the holy bishops Malik Ishtar resign from his position after courting him.' I am smiling so wide my face is hurting.

"Marik?" My pretty light asks as I dawdle. Silly me. "You're right. We're too tired for it. We'll just be two civilized adults sleeping in one bed."

Malik laughs. And it's all that matters.

* * *

_Okay so Bronzeshipping won't be so vehement in this because they're already a couple. But they'll be mentioned all the time._

_Oh god. I just love Yu-Gi-Oh! and all its goodness. It's so straight that I want to kill myself for writing a yaoi fanfic for it._


End file.
